Marine LePen from France’s far right National Rally Party was allowed by a court to stand in the upcoming Presidential election. Now, a voter preference poll has indicated that LePen’s party would sweep the first round, if held today.
France Presidential Election Latest News: Marine LePen Leading in Latest Opinion Poll
According to an opinion poll conducted recently, Marine LePen from the far right National Rally Party is currently leading with 34 to 35% of the votes in the first round of France’s presidential election.
While her closest rival would be centrist Edouard Philippe with 19% votes. The survey took the opinion of 1503 adults into consideration and was conducted by Elabe for BFM TV and La Tribune Dimanche newspaper.
Who is Marine LePen?
Marine LePen is a lawyer and politician from the National Rally Party. She is a second generation politician and served as the party’s president from 2011 to 2021.
LePen is credited with engineering the ‘de-demonisation’ policy that is frequently associated with the National Rally Party today. In January 2024, she became the most popular politician in France according to a prominent poll at the time. Jordan Bardella, the party’s likely Prime Minister pick is considered to be her protege.
France Presidential Election Latest News: The Scandal Surrounding Marine LePen
Many are shocked about LePen’s enduring popularity, despite a highly publicised scandal. In March 2025, she was found guilty of embezzling funds meant for the European parliament to pay the employees of the National Rally Party, her chauffeurs and bodyguards.
At the time, she was publicly barred from running for office and filed an appeal to challenge the decision She faces an individual €100,000 fine, alongside a whopping €2 million fine that was imposed on her.
On July 7 2026, the Paris Court of Appeal found her party guilty of systematically embezzling over €2.8 million to €4.4 million in European Parliament (EP) funds between 2004 and 2016. She was handed a 3 year prison sentence and also ordered to pay a €100,000 fine. The court also allowed her to run in next year’s presidential elections of France.
France Presidential Election 2027: Key Candidates
The key candidates in France’s presidential election include:
-
Marine LePen
-
Eric Zemmour
-
Gabriel Attal
-
Edouard Philippe
-
Jean Luc Melenchon
-
Raphael Glucksmann
Incumbent Emmanuel Macron can’t run again due to the term limit set by French law.
About France’s Presidential Elections 2027
The presidential election of France is scheduled for next year, and has been split into two rounds. The first round is scheduled forApril 18, 2027, while the run off will happen on May 2, 2027.
The main candidates include former Prime Ministers Edouard Phillipe and Gabriel Attal; and right winger Jean Luc Melenchon. Incumbent President Emmanuel Macron is barred from running again as he has served 2 terms (the term limit in France). While the National Rally Party has not announced their final nominee yet.
France Presidential Election 2022 Results: A Quick Recap
During the 2022 Presidential elections of France, incumbent candidate Emmanuel Macron successfully returned to power.
